Frequent use of current high-tech and costly tennis shoes on court surfaces made of concrete often results in a shoe sole wear-out in a matter of weeks and requires discarding of a shoe costing from $50.00 to $80.00. Presently, the two popular ways to combat this problem are generally considered unsatisfactory. One is to use a "shoe goo" substance to temporarily cover worn areas on the sole and the other is to have the shoe re-soled by a specialty repair shop. Re-soling may cost $20.00, take several weeks and result in shoe reshaping and foot discomfort.
It is known to provide shoes, and particularly athletic shoes, with "overshoes". However, these overshoes are not designed or used for protecting the sole from excessive wear, such as that caused by playing tennis on hardcourts. Instead, the known overshoes are designed to either protect the shoe from the elements, to protect various surfaces from the footwear, or to increase traction.
Examples of overshoes that protect a shoe from the elements are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,465,504; 2,068,238; 2,440,563; and 3,724,107. They typically consist of a rubber material that is stretched over the shoe and protect the shoe from rain, snow, etc. They are not designed for protecting the sole of an athletic shoe from wear such as that experienced when used playing tennis on a hardcourt.
Overshoes which are designed to protect various surfaces from the footwear are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,313,047; 4,693,019; 4,872,273; and German Patent Document DE 32 05 444. The U.S. Patents describe shoe covers that are designed to fit over, for example, shoes having golf spikes so that the shoes may be worn indoors without harming floor surfaces.
The German Patent Document describes an overshoe that is designed for covering a tennis shoe when the tennis shoe is worn indoors. Such an overshoe is needed to protect an indoor floor after tennis from dirt or clay that adheres to the shoe when playing tennis on a clay court, such as the majority of the tennis courts found in Germany. Thus, the overshoe described in this German Patent Document does not protect the shoe sole from wear on the tennis court, but rather protects an indoor floor from the shoe and the dirt from the tennis court. To accommodate the particles of dirt and clay, this overshoe would necessarily be oversized, making it unsuitable for use during play due to weight and slippage between the overshoe and the shoe.
Overshoes which are designed to increase traction are described in, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,434,565 and 4,779,360. These are not designed for protecting the soles of the shoes from wear such as that experienced in playing tennis on a hardcourt.